The Ethiopian Human Rights Commission (EHRC) says an armed group has taken control of an area zone in the western region of Benishangul-Gumuz.
The Kamashi area, with a population of about 25,000, is under “near full control of an armed group”, a statement from the state-linked commission said.
Local security officials had been outnumbered, and additional forces who had been deployed had not yet arrived, it said.
Reports had been received of civilians being killed and civil servants being kidnapped, the EHRC said.
Residents had told the EHRC that the armed group razed and looted property, with many people including the police, fleeing the area.
“This escalation of the insecurity plaguing the area is alarming,” the commission said, while calling for an immediate reinforcements.
Benishangul-Gumuz has witnessed a number of deadly attacks since September, with hundreds killed in an ethnic conflict over land and resources.
The controversial Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, which will be Africa’s biggest hydropower project, is also located in Benishangul-Gumuz.
Source: BBC
